


Just Best Friends

by SofiAttemptsToWrite



Category: Fence (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Fencing, Friends to Lovers, M/M, at least for now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2018-11-30
Packaged: 2019-08-20 17:06:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16559807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SofiAttemptsToWrite/pseuds/SofiAttemptsToWrite
Summary: This is the story of how Aiden and Harvard get together. I couldn't find one so I wrote my own.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Sooo there are literally only 5 fics for this pairing in this entire website. This fandom really needs more people! Anyway, I'm obsessed with Aiden and Harvard, and I couldn't find one (1) fanfic in which they get together, so it's my duty to write it myself.  
> The first chapter are some canon scenes from the comic to which I've added some internal monologue, but I promise the next chapter is going to move on to new stuff.  
> Enjoy!!  
> PS, this is not my native language, so if you spot any grammar mistakes please let me know on the comments. Also, let me know what you think :D

Aiden kissed the boy and ran a hand through his hair. What was his name again? Henry? Harry! He didn't really know. It didn't matter anyway. It's not like he would talk to him after that night.

The boy kissed his neck passionately.

“God, Aiden, you're incredible”, he said under his breath. “I never thought I'd meet a guy like y--”

Aiden's phone buzzed. “Hold that thought”, he said, and took his phone out of his back pocket. It was a text from Harvard.

_Hey, are you around?_

He didn't think about it twice. This was a very stressful night, the following day was the last day of tryouts for the fencing team, and his best friend needed his support. He didn't even reply to the text, and instead turned around and started making his way to his and Harvard's room.

“Something came up”, he told the guy without looking back. “Later, Harry!”

“It's Larry!” He shouted back, ofended and confused.

Aiden didn't feel bad about leaving his date, though. He had loads of dates. He had been with about half the students at the school. But there was only one Harvard. He was special.

When he got there, his friend was sitting on his bed, looking down to his lap. He looked defeated. Aiden didn't understand why, he was the only fencer in the tournament who was still undefeated. But again, this was Harvard. He stressed about stuff. It's what he did. Aiden wanted to hug him and tell him everything was going to be okay.

Instead, he said:

“I could tell from your text you were moping.”

“I'm not moping!” he replied defensively. He had dark circles under his eyes.

Aiden threw himself on the bed next to his friend.

“What is it?” he asked. “C'mon, spill.”

“It's nothing. It's stupid. I'm nervous about tomorrow.”

“Nervous? You're the only one with straight wins”, he said, turning to look at him.

“My first match tomorrow is against Seiji. I know he's better than me, it's just-- I'm a senior and I'm supposed to be the team captain you know? It's tough to lose to a freshman in front of everyone.”

Aiden didn't say anything so Harvard added, smiling: “I told you it was stupid.”

He was acting like he didn't really care, but Aiden knew him. They had been friends since kindergarten, and he knew he was too self demanding. He always worried about the little things.

“Harvard--”

“After Seiji beats me, no one will doubt that he's earned his place”, Harvard went on as if he hadn't heard him. “He won't get any hazing or trouble. So that's-- that's good.”

“You're talking like he knows he's going to beat you.”

“Well, yeah.”

Aiden looked at his friend in the eye.

This was another thing Harvard did. He always thought less of himself. Aiden hated that.

“He didn't beat _me”,_ he said with an arrogant smile. Harvard smiled as well, and Aiden felt a bit better. He loved it when Harvard smiled.

“Not everyone has your way with words”, his friend said, and maybe Aiden was being too hopeful, but he thought it was a bit flirty. They were sitting next to each other on the bed, their noses only a few inches apart. Harvard’s smile suddenly disappeared, and so did Aiden's.

“You've never needed tricks. You're a great fencer”, Aiden said in no more than a whisper. They were so close that he was sure Harvard had heard.

“You… really think I can win?” Harvard asked, whispering as well.

Aiden smiled again.

“I think you're amazing, Harvard. I think you can do whatever you put your mind to.”

Aiden inched a bit closer, but Harvard looked away.

“Thanks, Aiden”, he said, a bit embarrassed by the intimacy of the moment before.

Aiden went back to laying on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. “What are friends for?” he said, but he felt fake. He felt like he was lying to Harvard every time he said they were only friends. Aiden felt much more for him than only friendship. He was in love with Harvard. He couldn't remember a time when he wasn't. He was just-- everything about him, it made him so happy. He just wanted to kiss him and hold him and never let go.

But he couldn't say it out loud. It would ruin their friendship, and Aiden couldn't let that happen. Harvard was the most important person in his life. He had always been there for him, no matter what. When he had been young and annoying, when he had no other friends and he wanted to die, Harvard had always been by his side. He couldn't afford to lose him.

Also, he had a reputation. And he didn't sleep with people on the team. And he was bad news. He didn't trust himself to be in a relationship with anyone, let alone with Harvard. He didn't want him to get hurt. If he did, he'd never forgive himself.

“It's Saturday night”, Harvard said, looking at him again. “I thought you'd have a date.”

Aiden suddenly remembered about the guy he had been making out with. What was his name? It didn't matter. He didn't want to go back with him. He wanted to stay with Harvard. He smiled at him fondly.

“Nope”, he lied. “Stuck hanging out with your sorry self.”

“We should probably get an early night and get ready for tomorrow”, Harvard said, nervously.

“Probably”, Aiden agreed.

Then, Harvard's face lit up like he suddenly had the best idea ever.

“You wanna--”

“-- eat snacks and watch old movies?”, Aiden completed his thought.

That was what they usually did at night. They both lived old films. So they set everything up, and fifteen minutes later they were both lying on Aiden’s bed, watching a film about the middle age. They loved these ones, because there was usually fencing in them, and it was always painfully inaccurate. They had loads of fun pointing out the mistakes the actors inevitably made.

By the end of the film, the were cuddling sleepily. It wasn't in a romantic way, they felt comfortable enough around each other that they usually did this when they were together.

That's what Aiden kept telling himself, at least. Still, he could feel every inch of skin where their bodies touched. He felt at home like this. Harvard was his home. He looked at his face in the darkness; his dark skin, his beautiful brown eyes and his long eyelashes. His filled lips, which were only a few inches away from Aiden's. He wanted to kiss him so bad.

But he couldn't, so when the movie ended, he just went to sleep as if nothing had happened.

 

The next day, after Harvard and Seiji’s match, Aiden found his friend alone in the dressing rooms. He was sat on a bench, facing the lockers. He didn't see him come in, but Aiden knew he could feel his presence. He let out a sigh. Harvard had lost, but Aiden had seen the match. His friend had done his best, and he had fenced really well, but Seiji was just too good. He knew Harvard had known he couldn't win, but Aiden could see that he was still disappointed in himself.

“You okay?” he asked.

Harvard didn't turn around to answer.

“Yeah. Seiji's right. I do need to improve in the low lines. He's going to be a killer addition to the team. He might even give us a chance against Exton.”

“Always thinking about what's best for the team”, Aiden smiled.

“People resent talent like his. I want us to make sure that no one gives him any trouble.”

“I think that frowny-faced little freshman can take care of himself.”

“That includes you, Aiden”, Harvard added, frowning.

“Yes, captain.” He looked at him in the eye, so he knew he was serious. “Glad you're feeling like yourself again, since your next opinent isn't going to go easy on you.”

“Really?” Harvard said curious. “Who is it?”

Aiden smiled.

“Me.”

He only meant it as a joke of course. Aiden knew he couldn't beat Harvard. He wasn't as good of a fencer as him, and his usual tactics didn't apply to his best friend. His fencing style consisted of him reminding the opponent of their weaknesses, making them feel bad about themselves and insecure. But he couldn't do that to Harvard, obviously. So, in a match that depended only of his fencing skills, he didn't stand a chance against his friend.

Still, they always had a lot of fun fencing. They had since they were kids. They had developed an interest in the sport together, growing up, so they had always practiced with each other. Aiden was sure all the hours he spent training with his friend were the only reason he was any good.

The match ended 15-9, leaving Aiden tied with Nicolas and Eugene for the 3rd place on the team. He only had to win his last match, and he was in. If he didn’t, they would still be tied. There would be a chance that he didn't make it.

Everyone thought Aiden couldn't care less about fencing because he never went to training, but really, his times in the team last year had been the best of his life. He really wanted to make the team this year as well. He was a senior, so it was his last chance. Plus, if Harvard made the team and he didn't, they wouldn't have as much time to spend together during their last year before they parted ways for college.

That day, as it was the last day of competition, the families of each fencer came to support them. Everyone looked so happy around him. Aiden didn't expect anyone to come see him fence. His father was busy, and his current wife was probably spending all their money at some spa. He couldn't care less honestly. He had his friends here, and that was all the support he needed.

This is why he was surprised when he saw his mom show up. Her clothes made her look like a shallow bitch so at least they were appropriate, in Aiden's opinion. Everyone had started to gossip, but he wasn't surprised. His mom had that effect in people. He guessed _he_ had that effect in people as well.

“Hi, Clarisse”, he said, a bit annoyed, but also a bit embarrassed.

“Aiden, baby, it's Alice.”

 _Whatever_ , he thought. He had to get ready for his next match. It was against Jay… who was that again?

He was finishing with his suit when Harvard approached him.

 _“Um_ , your mom wanted to stay, but something urgent came up.”

“The Hamptons or West Palm Beach?” he asked. Aiden appreciated Harvard's good intentions, but he honestly couldn't care less about it, and he didn't want to get distracted for his last match.

“She might not be here, but I am”, he said. Of course Harvard got angry about little things like this, his family would never do it. They were always by his side. They were more parents to Aiden than his own parents were. “I'm here, and I know you can win this match. I believe in you.”

Looking back, Aiden should have felt touched. He knew he could always count on his friend. But he was stubborn above all, so he had to argue with him.

“Harvard, I couldn't care less about it. She's not even my mom.”

Harvard was going to reply, probably something cheesy about friendship that would anger Aiden even further at that moment, but that he would replay countless times later at night until he fell asleep, but before he could say anything, he was interrupted by someone shouting.

“You want to stop flirting with the captain and get in the strip? Some of us are actually here to fence.”

They both turned around. Standing a few meters away from them was the guy he had had sex with a few days ago. So that was Jay! He had been excessively angry about Aiden dumping him. He didn't understand why. People should know by now that Aiden didn't do relationships. Why did so many of the guys he had sex with thought they'd be the exception?

Aiden was furious. Jays anger hadn't bothered him before, but now he was bringing Harvard into the mess and he was not going to allow that. Aiden usually felt like he had two lives, one in which he was a playboy and another in which he was Harvard's best friend. He didn't like the two sides of him to meet. Also, Jay had said it like Aiden just wanted to have sex with Harvard. Like that boy and the captain were on the same level. He didn't like that. Harvard wasn't like the others. If his friend told him they could be together, but he never wanted to have sex, he would accept it with no hesitation. Aiden cared about him more than he did about anyone else. He wasn't going to let this Jay person talk shit about his feelings.

“Aiden--” Harvard said, but he ignored him.

He was going to win this match against Jay. That guy wouldn't stand a chance.

“Guard check.”

“You know, Ray--” he started. “No one's ever going to care enough about you to stick around.”

He saw how Jay’s face contorted. He knew it was mean, but he couldn't help it. Aiden was a very emotional person, and his behaviour was very affected by his mood. And right now, he couldn't be angrier at his opponent.

There was a break when they were 11-5, which Harvard used to assure him excitedly that he was going to win, while Aiden nodded and smiled fondly. It was ridiculous how easy it was for Harvard to make him feel better.

The match ended, and Aiden was the winner. He was on the team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! Say hi to me on tumblr: sofiattemptstowrite


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2 is ready! Hope you like it!

Some time had passed since the last member of the team had been selected. Everyone was feeling much more relaxed now, and they were all training really hard in order to be able to beat Exton next season. Well, almost everyone.

Aiden still hadn't shown up to practice once. It was starting to drive Harvard insane. What the hell was he doing? Why couldn't he take anything seriously?

He was practicing with Seiji that day. He really liked fencing with him, and he always felt he got so much better after their matches. The freshman was so talented, and his advice was genuinely helpful. Harvard was happy he was on the team, because he could help them all improve.

After Seiji scored on him again, they decided to take a break. Harvard drank some water, and then looked around to see how the other fencers were doing. He was really proud of them, they were all giving their bests. This was truly going to be a great year.

That's when he saw him.

Aiden had finally come to practice, but instead of fencing, he was chatting with his little fan club. He saw him laugh flirtily at something one of them said.

Harvard didn't know why, but that made him angry. He didn't understand what went on inside Aiden's head. He knew making the team hadn't been easy for him, even though he acted like it was. He had put a lot of effort into training when he thought no one was paying attention. Why had he worked so hard to be on the team if all he cared about now was finding someone to have sex with? Why didn't he take this seriously? Was his friend really so shallow as everyone said?

A voice in the back of his head told him that no, he obviously wasn't shallow, he was his best friend in the whole world, they understood each other so well, they loved each other. He was just putting on an act, for some reason. Probably because he was insecure. Harvard remember how shy he had been as a kid.

But right now, Harvard didn't care how long they had been friends. He wanted to shout at Aiden for not caring. _Stop talking to those stupid guys and come fence with me!_ , he thought.

He approached the group. They didn't even notice him coming.

“Aiden!” he called, trying -and failing- to get his attention. “Aiden!” he repeated, louder this time.

That's when he saw him. “Harvard!” He greeted him. “How are you doing today, dude? You left the room so early I couldn't even say good morning to you!”

“I came to practice. Like the rest of the team. Why weren't _you_ here?”

“Oh well, you know--”

“No, I actually don't know”, Harvard interrupted. He just couldn't deal with Aiden when he was like this. “What do you do that's more important than the team? No one _made_ you try out! It was your choice! I just-- I don't understand why no matter how much you know this means to me, you can't take it seriously!”

The fan club gasped. Aiden was angry now as well.

“That's so unfair. I'm sorry my life doesn't revolve around fencing like the rest of you freaks! I have other things going on!”

“Well, I'm sorry I thought you cared about anything other than yourself. We need you on the team, you made a commitment. But clearly, you have _other things going on_.”

Aiden looked hurt, but Harvard stormed off without waiting for a reply, leaving him speechless.

 

Harvard laid down on his bed, his face buried in his pillow. He felt angry, frustrated, and upset. He kept replaying the events of a few hours before in his head. He still couldn't believe how he'd snapped at Aiden. He never got so angry, especially not at him. He understood how Aiden felt, most of the time. But that day, something about seeing him flirting with those guys, completely ignoring Harvard when be had needed him, made him feel… ugh. Why did Aiden made him feel like this?

He felt bad, he wanted to apologize, but a small part of him still couldn't feel guilty about shouting at him, because Aiden had been behaving like an ass for way too long. He kind of had it coming.

Harvard was still thinking about all of this, falling into that weird state between awake and asleep, when Aiden came stumbling into their room.

Harvard was startled awake. He expected another person to enter behind him, but he was alone. This was unusual.

Harvard turned the lights on to see his friend. It was quite obvious Aiden was a bit drunk. Maybe a lot drunk. Also it was quite obvious he had been crying.

He sat up worried, all traces of his anger gone. What had happened?

Harvard knew Aiden was a very emotional person. He was also very impulsive. What had upset him so bad to end up like this? Was it because of their argument?

“Aiden-- What…?”

Aiden looked defeated. He just sat on the bed next to him and rested his head on his hands. They didn't speak for a while.

After a few minutes, Harvard took his hand, gently. They were best friends, after all. They could talk about whatever was bothering Aiden. He looked at him.

“What's wrong?” he asked.

Aiden let out a shaky sigh and shook his head. “It's nothing, I'm-- really, don't worry. I'm overreacting.”

When Harvard had said the same thing a few weeks ago about Seiji beating him, Aiden had insisted that it wasn't stupid. He had wanted to talk about it and he had made him feel better. Harvard wanted to do that for his friend now.

“It's not nothing, if it's making you feel like this,” He assured him. “If this is about our fight, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it, I just--”

“No, it's not about that. Well, at least not entirely--”

“What is it then? You can tell me anything, you know?”

“But I can't,” Aiden whined. “I can't, I can't…”

He was definitely drunk.

“I’m-- Oh, I'm such an asshole all the time, Harvard. It's exhausting.” He rested his head on Harvard's shoulder.

“You're not an asshole. You're smart, and passionate, and an incredibly good friend.”

Aiden let out a quiet sob. “You're too nice to me. Way too nice. I don't deserve you.”

“Don't say that--”

Aiden looked at him in the eye. He was so close, Harvard could see his eyelashes, and his cheekbones, and the way his hair curled cutely behind his ear. He was so handsome, no wonder why so many of their classmates had a crush on him.

“Oh, Harvard--” he said. “I'm so _so_ glad you're my friend…”

“I'm glad too,” Harvard said smiling. “You're the best friend anyone could hope for. I love you.”

They were only inches apart. Harvard wanted to give him a hug, to show him he was there for him, no matter what. But he didn't have time to do anything. He didn't even understand what was going to happen before Aiden leaned in and kissed him.

It was a short kiss. Their lips touched and Harvard was too surprised to do anything. Before he could react, Aiden had pulled away. He was looking at him horrified.

He had kissed him. _What--?_ Harvard touched his lips absentmindedly. He could still feel the ghost of Aiden's lips pressing on his own.

Suddenly, his friend stood up. Harvard wanted to tell him to stop, he wanted to tell him they could talk about it, but before he could, he ran out of the room, and Harvard was left sitting by himself, sad and confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you thought in the comments! Next chapter will be done soon. Say hi to me on tumblr: sofiattemptstowrite


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took a while for me to finish this chapter because I wanted issue 12 to come out before I published it. But it's finally here!

No no no no no. Why had Aiden done that? Why? He had ruined everything. Everything! There was no going back now. Why had he kissed Harvard? Oh my God, he was so stupid.

He ran away from the room. Aiden didn't know where he was going, he just new he had to be far away. He didn't even care about curfew, he had to escape. He couldn't believe he had done that. What had he been thinking?

 _Yes_ , he had been upset. _Yes_ , he had drunk a bit. _Yes_ , Harvard was so incredibly good to him, and nice, and handsome, and perfect, but that didn't mean he could kiss him! Aiden had behaved like such an asshole!

For years (years!) he had wanted to kiss Harvard. He had seen those beautiful lips of his forming his beautiful smile, and had wanted to kiss him, and hold him, and let him know just how much he loved him. But he hadn't done any of that because he knew what was best for their friendship. He had his rule, _no sleeping with guys on the team,_ to keep him from ruining the only good thing in his life. And now, all those years of keeping his crush secret had been wasted, because he had ruined everything in just one emotional moment. The most important person he had in his life, and now their relationship would never be the same again. Oh God, what had he done?

He had even been avoiding Harvard last week, because he didn't want to do anything stupid. That was why he hadn't gone to practice in the first place! And now that stupid argument about stupid practice had led to...

Ugh!

He needed to talk to someone about this, and he could only think of one person to do that.

 

Harvard stared at his room's ceiling. White. Empty.

What had just happened? And more importantly, how had he not realised it was coming?

Aiden had kissed him. _His_ Aiden. His best friend. The one person he had thought kept no secrets from him. He had clearly been wrong. Aiden had kept a huge secret from him, who knows for how long.

He could still taste his friends lips on his own. It had been so sudden… In all the years he'd known him, Harvard had never even considered that Aiden could be attracted to him. He never behaved the same way around him as he did with all the other guys. He never flirted with him. He had assumed it was because Aiden considered him more of a brother to him, but now...

Why had Aiden kissed him?

He wondered if it had been just for some drunk sex. Then he felt bad for even thinking that. Of course it wasn't. The tortured look in his friends eyes--

Harvard knew him too well to ignore the fact that the kiss had meant something to Aiden. Something huge, maybe more so than Harvard could even comprehend.

Aiden liked him. Like _that_ . Like, a _boyfriend_ kind of way. But it couldn't be. Aiden didn't like anyone on a boyfriend kind of way.

And yet, for a moment, he allowed himself to think of his friend like that. He imagined them cuddling, kissing, running a hand through his perfect hair while they did. He imagined them going on dates and holding hands. It wasn't something horrible to imagine. Harvard felt a warm feeling in his chest, like butterflies.

He imagined them being all couple-y in front of the rest of the school. _That_ he couldn't imagine. Not because Harvard was afraid of people knowing he liked guys. He wasn't really sure what he was, honestly, but he knew he wasn't gay. He also knew he thought Aiden was definitely the most beautiful person alive.

No, it was not because of that that he couldn't imagine them in a relationship. It was because Aiden didn't do that. He liked casual hook ups, not commitment.

‘Still,’ Harvard thought. ‘If Aiden wanted to be my boyfriend, I would accept without a second thought.’

Because he loved him. He loved him so much.

In every way possible.

 

The knock on his door woke Kally up. He heard Tanned groan next to him. “What time is it…?”

“Who is it?” Kally asked.

“Its-- it's Aiden.” His voice sounded a bit shaky.

Tanner swore under his breath. “That asshole-- I hope he has a good reason for waking us up in the middle of the night.”

Kally brushed his roommate’s fingers on his way to the door, calming his anger. He knew Tanner worried about Aiden as much as he did, if not more. He was very protective of his friends, he was just a bit moody.

When Kally opened the door, he was surprised to see Aiden’s red eyes. Had his friend been crying? What had happened?

“Aiden, what's wrong? Come in!”

Aiden did; he lied down on Kally’s bed and buried his face in the pillow.

Tanner looked a combination of worried and angry, not a very good combination when faced by an emotional Aiden. Kally sighed.

“What happened Aiden? Why aren't you in your room? It's past midnight.”

Aiden mumbled something against the pillow Kally couldn't understand.

“What was that?” He asked.

Aiden looked at him, his eyes sadder and more desperate than he'd ever seen them.

“I said-- I said I kissed Harvard.”

“WHAT?” Tanner shouted. Kally wasn't sure he hadn't woken the entire building up.

“Are you serious, Aiden? Did you really--?”

“Well, it was about time!” Tanner interrupted, excited.

“Did he reject you?” He asked Aiden in a low voice.

“Well… no, not really. I ran away before he could,” Aiden replied embarrassed.

“You did _what_? Why did you do that?”

Kally shot Tanner a look that said, _This is serious_ and _If you don't shut up right now--._ Tanner replied with a look that said, _Sorry *puppy eyes*_ and at the same time, _I'm not sorry at all._

“Because I didn't want to put him in an uncomfortable position!” Aiden replied, oblivious to their exchange. “He must hate me now! What was I thinking? Oh, God… I might as well disappear completely and save Harvard from the embarrassment of having to turn me down.”

Kally looked at him empathetic.

“You don't know if he's going to reject you.”

“ _Of course_ he will. Harvard’s not-- and even if he were, I'm not meant to be in a relationship.  No matter how much I want to… it would never work. I can't-- Commitment. Dates. Being in love. I don't know how to do that.”

“Oh, Aiden. None of us really do either. We're in high school. No one really knows what love is yet. We have to figure it out on the way.”

“But I… I'm not sure--”

“Look, you really like Harvard, right?” Tanner said. “And don't even try to deny it. Everyone can see the lovestruck expression on your face every time you look at him. You do everything together. You're basically in a relationship already, if we ignore the fact that you sleep with everyone but him. So that's it! Go tell him! C'mooon!”

Aiden laughed and he threw a pillow at his friend. Kally smiled.

“Who wants chocolate?” He asked. He took out the bag of sweets his family had sent him, and they all ate until they had a stomachache. When Aiden left to go back to his room, he was smiling slightly.

Kally looked at Tanner.

“It was about time, wasn't it?” He said.

“Oh my God, are you kidding me? The sexual tension between those two was going to drive me insane!”

 

Aiden took a deep breath. Come on come on come on. It's gonna be okay. Harvard will understand. It's not like you slept with him anyway, so there's still a chance it'll be alright. There's still a chance--

He remembered his conversation with Ray (Jay?) a while back, when Harvard had asked him to apologize.

 

_“Hey there. I just wanted to say--”_

_“Harvard made you come and apologize, didn't he?” The boy interrupted, quite rudely, Aiden may add._

_“Yeah,” Aiden admitted._

_“I don't need an apology. You never made me any promises. And you were right. I wasn't good enough to make the team. Next year, i'm going to focus on college, without getting distracted by cute boys.”_

_“It's not your fault you were distracted. I am_ very _cute,” Aiden said, shrugging._

_For a moment, it seemed like all the bad feelings had been left behind._

_“Can I ask you something?” He asked then._

_“Sure.”_

_“Why do you have that rule anyway? That you don't sleep with guys on the team?”_

_Aiden smiled. The boy deserved to know that at least._

_“So I don't screw up…” he looked at Harvard. “… the one good thing in my life.”_

_“Aiden! Come on!” his friend called._

_“See you round, Ray.”_

 

No one had asked him before why he had that rule, not even Harvard. Aiden guessed they all had assumed it was some weird professionalism thing. Aiden couldn't care less about that. He just knew that there were more important things that messing around.

He thought of Tanner and Kally, and how they'd encouraged him to tell Harvard how he felt. He thought of how sure they seemed that they would have a happy ending.

He thought of Harvard, waiting for him behind that door. His dark skin, and his full lips, and his cheekbones. His dedication, and his passion, and how impossibly nice he was. He thought of his friend. He thought of every time he'd been there for him.

It was going to be okay, he told himself. He kept telling himself this when he opened the door.

Harvard was waiting for him awake. He was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He turned his head to see him when he entered.

“Um, hi,” Aiden said, awkwardly.

“Hello.” Harvard was looking at him as if he expected him to burst into either song or tears in any moment.

“Um-- about what happened before… y'know. I didn't mean it. I mean, I did, but if you don't want-- then nothing happened. Like-- I'm not making any sense… I wanted this apology to go well... I'm so sorry, I'm such a mess…”

His friend smiled sadly.

“We're both a mess.” He gestured for Aiden to sit next to him, and when he did, Harvard put his arm around his shoulders, pulling him close to his side. Aiden curled up against his body, comforted by his friends warmth.

They stayed there in silence for a while. When Aiden was started to think Harvard had fallen asleep, his friend spoke.

“Why did you kiss me?”

Aiden sighed. A part of him was hoping this part of the conversation never happened.

“I… I wanted to kiss you.” There was another long silence, and then Harvard said:

“Why?” His voice was barely a whisper.

“Because-- because--”

He sat up to look at him in the eye. He needed to be looking at his friend when he finally told him this.

“Because you're Harvard. And you're like, my favourite person. And I've had a crush on you for so long. And because you're so handsome I want to die.”

“I thought you didn't-- the team…”

“I only made that rule up so I wouldn't be tempted. Our friendship will always be most important to me, and that's why I want to forget this problem ever happened. I'm sorry I kissed you, and I promise I won't do it again, because I love you and--”

He was interrupted by Harvard pressing his lips against his own. At firsts Aiden was surprised, but he wasn't going to complain. He kissed him back tentatively. Harvard's lips were sweet and he felt like flying. It didn't feel real but he was so happy.

Harvard pulled back and looked at him.

“I love you too. I mean, you're Aiden.” They both laughed at that. "But-- I understand. I couldn't bear being with you just for sex, like you like, and--”

“I don't want that with you.”

“You don't?” Harvard looked both surprised and a bit disappointed.

“I mean, maybe eventually. But you're Harvard. I want-- I want to _be_ with you. Be your boyfriend.”

Harvard's face lit up. “Boyfriend?”

“You're special, and I love you. And knowing you is the best thing that's happened to me. Not being with you is like torture. So yes. Boyfriend.”

Harvard kissed him again, this time deeper. They kissed until their breaths were agitated and their lips sore. And when they went to sleep, cuddled against each other, they knew they were finally where they belonged.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo this is it! Hope you enjoyed! I had a lot of fun writing it, so maybe I'll add another work on this series eventually, but that's it for now. Tell me what you thought!  
> Also, say hi to me on tumblr: sofiattemptstowrite.


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